Former Airline Employee Says Carrier Blackballed Her for Reporting Sexual Assault

A former American Airlines flight attendant says she has been blackballed by the carrier after reporting she was sexually assaulted by a celebrity chef while on a business trip.

Kimberly Goesling, 52, of Fort Worth, has filed a lawsuit in the 342nd Judicial District Court in Tarrant County, Texas against both the chef, identified as Mark Sargeant, and American Airlines.

The suit was filed in January 2020 under a pseudonym, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, but Goesling made an amendment to the petition last week and used her real name. She has since given at least two interviews about being grounded.

In the suit, Goesling alleges that as a flight attendant and a ‘top employee’ for American she was assigned a special trip to Germany in January of 2018 to work on developing an international menu for the airline.

Goesling claims in the suit that American knew of previous allegations that Sargeant was known for alcohol abuse and inappropriate sexual conduct.

On the final night of the group’s stay in Germany, Goesling said that Sargeant forced his way into her hotel room – with the encouragement of American Airlines managers – at 3:30 a.m. and sexually assaulted her.

American Airlines said after Goesling reported the assault, it conducted an investigation and severed business ties with Sargeant.

“Because this matter involves ongoing litigation, we aren’t able to comment further at this time, other than to say that Ms. Goesling remains a valued member of our team,” an airline spokesperson told the Star-Telegram.

In a subsequent investigation by American Airlines, the chef admitted to attacking Goesling, according to the lawsuit.